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Saturday, January 7, 2012

The Haunted House at Hillview

Hillview Avenue has its fair share of notoriety when it comes to the paranormal.
The so called Hillview Mansion was infamous for being haunted.
For years, it was an open secret spoken only in hush hush tones around the neighbourhood.
But it was well known amongst those who had an interest in things of the other dimension.

The Hillview Mansion was located at the highest point of habitation allowed on Bukit Gombak.
Its commanding view would be panoramic from Bukit Panjang right across to Clementi.
It was also variously called the Green House, or sometimes The Blue House (as it had a blue roof). It would be the dream house of any self respecting multi-millionaire and would probably be the most expensive house in that area of upscale millionaire neighbours.

But alas, the mansion was never completed.
Construction abruptly stopped in mid project and the building was abandoned from then on.

Location of the Hillview Mansion at Jalan Dermawan
Click on map to enlarge.

The land is unoccupied to this day.

The Hillview Mansion was located right at the end of Jalan Dermawan. It would have been the highest house on the hill. Beyond that was the boundary to the restricted ' trespassers will be shot ' Mindef land.

Why was it abandoned after more than half the building was completed?
My favorite rumour is that of the death of the mistress who was to occupy the house.
Seems she died when she 'felled' from the unfinished balcony during an inspection of the construction works. Just google 'Hillview Mansion' and you can read all the conspiracy theories there.

Here are some of the pictures (taken off the Net) that shows the abandoned haunted house.

The gates to the abandoned Hillview Mansion
See the magnificent million dollar view in the background.

Banshee cries, wailings, globs have all been reported over the years coming from the site. The plot is securely locked and protected with spikes and barb wire to prevent people from accessing the ground. Why is this so? What is the purpose of such extreme methods to lock people out even till now?

The house remained abandoned since the mid 1980s. It was was finally demolished sometime in the early 2000s, but the land has not been redeveloped since. The site still attract paranormal hunters to this day.

In December 2006, a massive landslide occurred at the very spot where the old house stood.
Gossips of the wrath of the spirits spread like wildfire amongst residents of the nearby estates.

Mindef covered the land with tarpaulin and compensated the affected neighbours.
Today the scars of that landslide can still be seen.
The land has since been turfed over.

WARNING: SPOILER AHEAD!
If you are one of those paranormal hunters, stop here!
Do not read further, as I am about to reveal a bit of the secret of the Hillview Mansion!

The name 'Hillview Mansion' was attributed to the abandoned dwelling by paranormal followers.
It never had a name at all.

The 'Hillview Mansion' was originally owned by Mr Chua Boon Peng, Chairman of Cycle & Carriage Industries Ltd. The company owned large plots of land in the Hillview area. Land which have been developed into condominium projects namely Meralodge, Merawoods, Montrosa and Hillview Villas which sits on the former car assembly factory site.

The plot at Jalan Dermawan was bought by Chua Boon Peng to build a private home. The Feng Shui was perfect for a home. In the 1970s, he paid a whopping $7m for that plot of land. An amount that was unheard of in those days.

Coincidentally, I worked for Cycle & Carriage in the late 70s, while a cousin was a long time secretary for the Chua brothers at C&C. To that, I was very familiar with the inside story of why the project had to be abandoned suddenly. It's a very sad tale.

In order not to spoil too much for any paranormal hunters who may be reading this, I will not reveal the reason why the house was abandoned midway through construction. The mystery should remain a mystery...

For those of you who might be curious to know the story behind the haunting of the mansion, please clickhere.

66 comments:

Dear James,Am truly honoured you so willingly took the effort out of your precious time to share the tale of yesteryear with me.Will definitely check here frequently to discover more interesting pieces of our little red dot.

Hello Charles.Yes, I read yr piece some time back. Good detective work. You managed to find out why it was abandoned in such a hurry?Would be interesting for you to add more spooky stories you encountered with the haunted Hillview house.

Your blog on Princess Elizabeth Park Estate is very informative. I used to pass by Hillville on bus from 1994-2000 as I was working at Mindef. I even lunched at the newer Hillville estate just outside Mindef gates and beside the older Princess Elizabeth Park. I never know about Princess Elizabeth Park till now.

Anyway I want to know the real story behind the 'Hillville Mansion', so hopefully you can answer my curiosity.

A family friend just forwarded to us the API piece on Chua Boon Peng's abandoned property at Hillview.A bit of googling led me to... your blog. :)Now I am very curious to know how that house came to be haunted.Hope you will share the story with me. Thank you so much!

I visited the place yesterday and found out additional things which I would only share some.... There is a semi-D directly below the plot of land that is not deserted... It has some indications of being haunted too.....unit 112..... also there seems to be a omega-shape plot of dug land that is around the size of a Chinese grave somewhere on the right side of the playground. Perhaps some of you may like to explore it and offer your opinions on these two facts....

James,I lived in Jalan Gumilang from 1969 till about 1985. I remember that hill before the "Mansion" was built. My dad would make balsa wood gliders and we'd fly them from there and my friends and I would play up there too. I never really heard anything about the house being haunted, and now I'm curious. Please email me the story. Thanks a bunch.My email: ifarid1964@gmail.com

i have been reading tales about hillview mansion since 2 years ago.. and finally, i came across your blog this morning and decided to explore the site this morning. However, the mansion is no longer there, instead, we did enjoy the quietness and the view from the top of the hill. I'm very curios about the story. would you please kindly email to me? my email: doreenglc@hotmail.com

Hello James, i am intrigued by the story behind the whole tale as there must be something more it than meet the eye. Could you please share this part with me? I am dying to know :D (anthony.h80@gmail.com) - Anthony Ho

hello.. you blog really open up to the past. looking at the empty field now, and relating to your stories about the past, gives me the imagination of what used to happen then. enjoy reading your blog, keep updating! and do send me the spoiler! i would like to know what happen then.. ginnypoa@hotmail.com

hi James, I chanced upon your blog as I was searching for information on property at jln Dermawan. Also saw your write up on St Mary's of the Angels. I have been a parishoner since 1968, during Fr Sylvester and Fr Gregory Eccles time. Wonderful church. Then, it was known as St Anthony's Friary.Could you please send the Story of the Haunted house to virge81@hotmail.com.Thanks

Hi, I used to visit that mansion frequently in my Secondary days, and I remembered I did went back once during 2007, and I still see the building there, I do have some doubts why the internet says it has been demolished in the early 2004, would like to know more of the story as well, drop me a mail @ hellokittylovess@hotmail.com

Hi hellokittylovess,You may possibly seen the wrong house in 2007 as it WAS demolished and there was a major landslide on the same ground. In fact, there were actually 2 landslides that year that totally devastated the land, making it unsafe or too costly to re-build any structures there.I have sent you the story of how the mansion became haunted to your email. Pls check yr inbox.

I'm curious about the haunted house at hillview but I want to ask you something before you send me the story.After reading your email, will I receive a myserious phone call and then have 7 days to solve the mystery?sadakoring@ringring.com

It's been fascinating reading ur blog as I have an aunt who lives at Bukit Panjang area and I'd stayed there for some time. Really enjoy looking at those old photos. Anyway, I would love to know the story behind that mansion too. My email is jitming@hotmail.comThanks!

Just to enrich the story a little, when i was younger, I actually saw a young girl running in the garage of my house. As i live near that hauted house, on jalan dermawan, can you please give me a heads up if this sighting was in any way related to the hauted house? This had riddled me for years, and i am still looking for answers. If you're able to provide me with details, i sure do appericate it.

Thanks a lot for your fascinating blog on PEE and the surrounding area. I live in hazel park now and was really surprise to read that dairy farm was in fact a farm with cows years ago. My daughter study in st Joseph church kindergarten and reading abt the history is awesome.

Thanks for this myth buster email on the hunted mansion, quite frankly I didn't know abt that hunted mansion until I read your blog.

I think the disappearance of PEE and the original area around it is truly ripping away a large part of Singapore's history. Well, I guess a v large part of the old sg had disappeared and will continue disappearing with the rapid economic development of sg.

Thanks, James for sharing the story. I enjoy reading your blog, have been meaning to show my mum your blog as she's a former resident of Princess Elizabeth estate as well as a former student of the school. I have fond memories of running around the estate catching insects, n heading to the mamak shop for bubblegum n shot pellets :)

Hi James, I am a native of Hillview Estate and enjoyed your blog thoroughly. My siblings and our childhood buddies have actually been inside the mansion several times between 1980 to 1984, when it was under construction.

Please enlighten me with the true story behind this house which has intrigued me for so long.

Hi James,I came across your blog by chance and I am intrigue with the stories you tell of Princess Elizabeth Estate.

I lived on the “hill” (Jalan Dermawan) for a good part of my life. I also have fond memories of the estate. I attended kindergarten at the CC. I also remember taking Tae Kwon Do lessons at the CC. There was a mute caretaker of the CC, whom they called “Bisu”. I understand that he has passed on. We used to play football at both the small field in the PE primary school and the “BIG” field in the estate.

Something interesting I would like to share with you. Before the “Hillview Mansion” was constructed, the site was just a flat piece of turf land for many years. It had the most amazing view and on a clear day, you could see some parts of Jurong. We would camp overnight on the hilltop during the school holidays. It was quite a climb before the “side road” was constructed.

I am not sure if anyone has shared this with you but there was a fatal mishap on the hilltop even before mansion was built. If my memories serve me right, it was in the afternoon when a young couple went up to the hilltop and one of them was struck and killed by a lightning. I cannot remember if it was the girl or the guy who was killed.

Princess Elizabeth Estate was one of those estates which had “character” and it made the place unique. Sadly, this is very much lacking in the “modern” estates today.

Hi Jacob,Yes, I remember the Dermawan/ Chu Lin area (Bamboo Grove Park) was just half of what it is today back in the 70s. The area where the "Hillview Mansion' would later be was just being cleared.I do recall vividly the incident of the lightning strike as I know the family of the victims. I did not write any articles about this incident as it may be quite sensitive still. It was the girl was was killed instantly.Jacob, maybe you have come very close to the reason why the mansion and the area became haunted! ha ha.

Hi Satayboy,You lived at Blk 12 beside the field or Blk 12 Hillview estate?I know the lightning boy as well. He lived in the same block two houses from me.Glad you are still in touch with all the old kampong folks.PEES having their 60th anniversary dinner next month (9 Nov). Should be nice to catch up with lots of old (ahem, former) classmates then !

Yea, lots of ex residents all have memories of the old hill top, in one way or another.

I read your blog on the Hillview mansion and it was very well written. Came across this building on the internet some time ago and I am quite curious about it as it is not far from my home at choa chu kang. Would like to visit it one day. Before that, perhaps you can send me the story behind this building?

Hi James,I`m at blk 12, 81 Philip Walk.. long before hill view flats was build. My dad was the Satay-man and also the garbage disposable worker with PHD. I sometimes help him out to cut grass and keep our estate clean and greenery. How I wish i could turn back the clock.. hehe!!

Yes the lightning boy was your neighbor, they stayed couple of years at the estate then shifted to chun tin rd (7th mile).

Thanks for the info regarding PEES 60th anniversary. Is this function open to all ex-Pees student or invi only?

Hello Moliano !I know you, or at least your family. You lived either at the last unit at the end or the one next to it (near the CC office end). Are you the Moliano of Love Hunter?If you are then I have to say I used your picture in my "luminaries' article!

The PEES 60th Anniversary is scheduled for Sat 9th Nov 2012, with Pres Tony Tan as Guest of Honour.Tickets can be obtained through the school officer i/c (Admin Mgr) Mr Eric Loh or email to peps@moe.edu.sg. Tickets are $60 /pax for the Dinner cum Musical.

In fact, I just make a booking through an ex-classmate's brother who will be attending with all his siblings. It's been at least 45 years since I saw them last.

There is a large group of ex-PEES alumnus on Facebook. Look for "Princess Elizabeth Estate School" and do join the group. A lt of your classmates are there I am sure.

Yes,I lived 2nd to end, my immediate neighbor was the Tan Family and we are keeping in touch with each other till today.

You are most welcome to use any of my picture, I can email you more pictures if you need for your future reference.

I`ll try aleart via email if not all atleast some of my 1967-1972 classmate to attend the 60th annivesary.I hope to meet Ms. Fernandez, she was my form teacher in Pri.3, I owe alot to her coz she inspire me and open up a path for me to become a successful musician.Ms. Fernandez used to stayed blk 24 (7th storey) then removed to Jln Asas (Fuyong Estate).

Hi, google search hillview and it lead me to your blog. I am curious to know what is the story behind it. Heard some stories but not sure which is the true one. Possible for u to email me at severus_revelation@hotmail.com. Many thanks.

Hi James! I read with interest the story of the haunted house. I just bought a HDB flat at Bukit Batok West Ave 5, where I believe its where all the occupants at PEE are relocated at Bukit Batok. I was exploring the area and I came across this place you mentioned above. I managed to trek from this "blue house" where it once stood to my flat opposite the hill at the other side!! All you need to do is to follow the fencing of gombak camp. could you kindly send the story over to me at dzy2703@gmail.com? I am very interested to know. Always thought there's a story behind that place, and wondering why such a prime estate has no bldg on it.

Hi tcyy, I've sent the story to your email. The path you took along the Mindef fence basically runs along the old Lorong Kemunchup. This old track ran from Princess Elizabeth Est School around the ridge, past the Gammon Quarry and ended up at the old Jalan Perang where you now live.

Hi James. I used to live in Hillview Avenue about 10 years back and I have always been curious about the abandoned house at Jalan Dermawan. I've even climbed the fence to want to check it out with my friends once, but we didn't dare go further beyond the gates and climbed back up to the main road.

I'd be very grateful if you can tell me the story of the haunted Hillview mansion. My email is discoecstasy@gmail.com. Hope to hear from you!

Nice blog and I read with interest on your piece about the hillview mansion. I've been staying at one of the condos along Hillview Ave and my the mansion can be seen from my kitchen. It's one huge structure!

hello! I just read your article on the Hillview Mansion. I would love to know the secret and the truth behind why it was abandoned half way. In 2001/2, my polytechnic classmates and I went to find out about the places one night after games of basketball. One of them who went ahead to the actual house front poach and came back totally shaken and frighten. Till today, he refuses to tell us what happened. Thanks

Hi James,I just get to know this place yesterday when me and my fren was having dinner at Al-Ameen along Chu Lin Road. So he bring me to see this place, it was about 2330hrs. After driving up that steep slope and was infront of the gate, i got off the car and stand in front of the main gate and saw someone inside lying down but facing the sky about 15m away. I cannot see as it was very dark but his hand was like swimming breaststroke style but in a slower motion. As i was staring at the guy trying to figure wat he's doing, my fren came up to me and i ask him, did yu see anything? He saw the same thing i saw and we headed off home. We dunno if its human or not but we'll go back there during daytime even now knowing it has been demolished.

It is very interesting to read about your blog of this "Hillview Mansion". In the 1990s, me and some colleagues drove up there very late one night. We adventure by climbing into the gate and walk quietly with holding two torchlights and holding each other hands. It was very spooky and scary. We didnt stay that long and quickly rush out by climbing out from the gate. We had parked our cars below down the slope because we do not want to be caught by authority if our cars seen park right infront of the gate.

Thank God so far no one has seen us doing that. It was such an adventure and what a memory! James, I would like to know more why the house became haunted. Can you email me the story at jeffery_abdullah@singnet.com.sg

I only found out about Hillview Mansion after relocated to Bukit batok. Can you share with me the history about Hillview Mansion. I use to run about Princess Elizabeth Estate when I was young. The bus terminal use to have Bus 193 and 173 (if I didn't remember wrong) I was only K1 or K2 back then.

Gosh... this brings back memories. I was in PEES from 1970 to 1975. If this piece of land was the flat piece of land on the hill top, then this was the very land my classmates and I used to run around. Magnificent view indeed.

Hi Mr James Tan. I'm a 19 year old guy currently studying in Singapore Polytechnic. And I love to know and learn about the history of places in Singapore. I came across your blog, it was awesome. I learnt some new stuffs too. Regarding the Hillview Mansion, can I know the story behind it? Would be great if u can share because I'm very interested. THANKS:)

Hi ZhetongHey thanks for visiting my blog. Glad to meet another enthusiast of local history. We shoud not only know but also try and tell others about our local history too. BUT contrary to what I just said, I had already made a pledge to keep silent about the mansion !!!!

I have decline so many requests now that it's really unfair to those I declined, but tell u what... I will be organizing a visit to an old Japanese war relic at Bt Gombak which is near the mansion. It's a WW2 machine gun pillbox actually. Built on 1942 and destroyed in 1945.

I'll keep you on the interest list and if u want to join me then, I am sure the story of the ghost mansion will come up. Probably sometime in mid Nov.

Hi James I've been following your blog for past 2 years. Keep up the awesome work.

When I was in my primary and secondary school days during the mid to late 90s, I would often cycle down with my bicycle together with my cycling kakis to visit this infamous house. I would enter through the drain on the bottom right, I was small enough to squeeze through, dragging my bicycle together with me.

I would push my bike up the slope round the bend to the house. I remember an image of overgrown plants, a pile of sand (I suppose meant to be for mixing with cement) and bricks scattered in front of the main entrance. Lots of graffiti, and litter left by previous trespasses.

I vividly remember on a particular trip the big gate was be wide open. As usual I went straight up the the slope, round the bend and in a distance lo and behold were foreign workers doing 'work', of what nature I don't know. Knowing that I wasn't supposed to be trespassing I immediately turned around and swiftly exited the compound.

In 2003 I made my final visit with some friends. I remember we were simply having a chat at Al-ameen along the row of shophouses down the estate and decided to visit the mansion one last time. By then I had my brand new 8 megapixel minolta digital camera with me. I tried to take shots from every lookout point possible (a lot of tree branches blocking the view). Wasn't easy to take photos in pitch black but here they are.

My grandmother used to live at Blk 2 Hillview Ave since the day those block of flats were built till the day it closed and moved all residents to Bukit Gombak (yup, I still remember the BP company that used to be diagonally across the street). I remember she always closed her bedroom windows every evening, and if she had forgotten about it, we'd have this eerie feeling (her window was facing towards the landslide area, landed properties etc) when we approach that window to shut it.

Can you email me the whole story at eleanorjthomas88@gmail.com please? Just to quench my curiosity.

Hi James, I am a resident at Hillview since 1997. Many times when I told people I stay in Hillview, their reply was : where the huanted house is? This mansion has become an icon of Hillview. I have stood at that magnificent yet eerie gate upteem times. Never have I ventured it. I regretted now. But it's too late. The house is gone. But I am so glad I chanced upon your blog. Finally someone knows the true story! If you do not mind, I would like to know the sad story behind it. Please email me at yokilam73@gmail.com. Thank you. Best Regards,Yoki

Hi James, I sent you a message earlier requesting for the story of this iconic house in Hillview. But I just read in your another post (Hillview Landslide) that you have decided not to divulge the story ... I am late again. What a pity. It's not just the story, but also as a Hillview resident, it's like this is part of us. Now it will not be complete. Not trying to convince you to tell but if there's a bit of chance .. anyway, keep up the good work. N keep it coming! Really enjoy reading your blog. Too bad only come across this today. But better late than never! Thanks & Regards,Yoki

Hi Lam Yoki,Thanks for visiting my blog. When I first wrote the article about the Hillview Mansion, I ended it with a teaser "If you wish to know more about the story behind the haunting, pm me" To my regret I was inundated with requests everyday and I tried to comply to everyone who wrote to me.But after a while I had to decide either to publicly write about the details or to put a stop to the requests. I decided to stop accepting requests for the story but also to preserve the mysterious aura of that place that had built up over the years.So once again apologies to all readers who missed the cut off.

I know that some later readers had actually mined the comments for email addresses of those who wrote to me earlier to get the story from them. To protect their privacy, I had to delete those early requests that supplied email addresses so that you wouldn't get bothered by others over my article.

Here's something you can do to learn more of that place....search the newspaper archives.Before the Mansion was built, there was an incident when a couple was caught in a sudden thunderstorm at that hillside and were both struck by lightning. The lady died instantly while the gentleman survived.I have not written an article about that incident so as not to intrude into the privacy or sensitivity of the families involved. In fact, I am still friends with the man who survived the incident. Best regards.

Hi James, thanks for the good work on this informative blog, especially the article on Sleepy Valley. I live in Parkview (one of the condos cited in the article) now, and I must admit, it did have an effect on me, knowing that it was the site of a 1100 men massacre. But a good read, nonetheless.

As for the hillview house, me and two friends did climb the gates and explored the place around 2001. We brought along a DV cam and digital camera. The walk up the slope after the gates were the worst parts of it. The house itself, was an intimidating sight, lots of elaborate wood carvings, and even a curved staircase leading up to the upper level. The banister was wood and elaborately detailed. It was mostly incomplete though, looked like everyone just simply stopped work and left everything as it were. Nothing out of the ordinary happened thankfully. The only strange thing is that the footage all seem to have... vanished.

I'm a resident in Chu Lin Road, Hillview. Was exploring the area and drove up that hill with my helper. My helper has a extremely strong third eye. And when we drove down, she had me stop the car, and threw 4 pieces of apples out of the car, before leaving the place. When we got home, she told me 4 Ahmas was following us, trying to talk to me in dialect from that mansion. I still wonder who that 4 ahmas is until today.

It's very interesting how you tried to create the suspense behind the reason of the abrupt halt to the construction of the mansion! As per your recommendations, I've read through the newspapers archives for early years (1980s & beyond in particular)........Indeed! The reason for the abrupt halt was so obvious! haha

Its really haunted , there was this time i went there with my friend , it is really spooky but nothing much happen , no sound nothing , but when we are back at my friend's house area , the back door of the car was slammed , there was no wind or anyone closed the door , it manage to slam the door shut by itself , it a really scary experience